As California explores reparations for its black residents for slavery, Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA) has remained largely silent on whether he will support the proposals.
The task force, which was created via a bill that Newsom signed into law in 2020, is set to release its final report on July 1 after nearly three years of research and deliberation.
SAN FRANCISCO LAWMAKERS TRYING TO CREATE $50 MILLION REPARATIONS OFFICE
The current proposal by the state task force calls for $360,000 for the roughly 1.8 million black residents in the Golden State who have at least one ancestor who was a slave. California was admitted in 1850 as a "free state," which did not permit slavery. Slavery was outlawed nationwide via ratification of the 13th Amendment to the Constitution in 1865.
The state legislature will vote on the recommendations once they are made by the task force in the coming months, but Newsom may feel pressure from activists to enact the proposal via executive action. Activists argued he has the power to make good on the reparations, but it comes as the state juggles a nearly $22.5 billion budget deficit for the next fiscal year.
The proposal is estimated to cost the state a reported $640 billion, requiring other programs to be cut to offset the deficit.
Newsom's 2023-2024 budget already calls for various programs, including a $330 million-per-year extension of the state's tax credit program for television and film productions from 2025 to 2030. The proposed tax credit extension would work to make California an attractive state to film in but would likely come at the cost of other programs.
The movie credit extension is being debated by the legislature but is under scrutiny considering the deficit, which needs to be made up, with some arguing it is hard to justify over other state programs.
“We can’t go back to our constituents and tell them why we put money in your pockets,” Assemblyman Phil Ting said during a hearing this week, per the Los Angeles Times. “We have to tell the child-care people, ‘Hey, sorry, we couldn’t give you money for child care because we gave money to movie studios.’”
Newsom, however, has shown a resolve to get the reparations program completed by vetoing a bill last year that would have extended the timeline for the task force to make its recommendations. He explained his veto by asserting it was the request of now-state Secretary of State Shirley Weber, who introduced the bill in the state legislature in 2020, giving a vote of confidence to the lawmaker behind the original proposal.
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The city of San Francisco is separately considering reparations for black residents, with current proposals calling for $5 million payments along with other benefits, including the elimination of personal debt and tax burdens, guaranteed annual incomes of at least $97,000 for the next 250 years, and homes in the city for $1 per family.
Lawmakers in the city have proposed setting aside $50 million to create an office in preparation for handling the San Francisco reparations, which they look likely to pass. The proposed plan has received criticism from many groups and people, including the San Francisco chapter of the NAACP, which argued investment in the black community would be more useful than direct payments.